Description: General George Armstrong Custer has been portrayed as everything from a vain but ultimately honorable hero (Errol Flynn in They Died with Their Boots On) to an insane* pompous incompetent (Richard Mulligan in the biting Little Big Man)* but few have attempted an ambitious look at the man in all his contradictions. Robert Siodmak's Custer of the West* his final American production* attempts the task with fine results* portraying the career soldier as a pragmatist* a disciplinarian with a bullying streak* a loner* and ultimately an Old World romantic in the modern age. Robert Shaw gives the role a regal bearing (though his continental accent keeps drifting in) and a sense of dignity* depicting a man who ironically identifies more with the Indians than with the U.S. Army. Jeffrey Hunter and Ty Hardin costar as his battling junior officers and Robert Ryan is memorable in a brief appearance as a gold-mining deserter. Shooting in handsome widescreen and vivid Technicolor* Siodmak makes his outdoor settings come alive and nimbly handles the many action scenes* most notably a chase that sends an escaping soldier whooshing down a log water chute like a Disney ride. Siodmak's sweeping visuals deliver both grand images and ironic counterpoint* but ultimately Custer of the West eschews the heroism of Hollywood adventures for a portrait of the corrupt state of the American military and one man's hopeless fight against it.